Polymarket cuts staff and contractors as its revenue pace passes $1.8 billion on the strength of sports trading

Polymarket says it is now bringing in revenue at a pace of more than $1.8 billion a year, up from just over $1 billion in June, and it laid off staff and contractors earlier this month as it reorganizes. CNBC reported the revenue figure on Tuesday. Front Office Sports' Ben Horney reported the layoffs after speaking with four people for the story.

Sports are a big part of the growth. CNBC reported that Polymarket's U.S. exchange handled more than $14.5 billion in notional volume in October, up from $4 billion in June, citing data from TickerTracker. It credited the jump to the summer's World Cup and the start of the NFL season. Combo contracts, which work much like a sportsbook parlay, made up more than 70% of the platform's volume on Sunday.

Who lost jobs

FOS reported that some full-time employees were let go, and that the company significantly reduced the number of contractors it uses, especially in marketing. A source told FOS that viral posts claiming Polymarket cut 30% of its staff were not accurate. A screenshot in one of those posts showed a contractor termination email effective Nov. 4. A source said that email went only to contractors.

"As we've grown and brought on new leadership, we've reorganized to set the company up for its next phase of growth, which has meant a lot of new hires, changes in personnel and letting some people go," a Polymarket spokesperson told FOS. The company declined to say how many employees or contractors it has.

The former chief marketing officer, Matthew Modabber, was fired in October, FOS reported. Former Uber executive Travis VanderZanden replaced him as chief growth officer.

Why it is reorganizing

Two sources told FOS the company wants to "professionalize" ahead of a possible move to go public as soon as 2027. Recent hires include CFO Warren Jenson, who held the same job at Amazon, Electronic Arts and Delta Air Lines.

Polymarket has started a $1 billion funding round that values the company at $21 billion, according to CNBC. FOS reported the round is being led by Donald Trump Jr.'s 1789 Capital. CNBC also reported that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission is conducting a broad investigation into the company's advertising and whether it violated an earlier settlement that barred U.S. residents from its international exchange.